A variety of medical procedures are performed to treat various female pelvic dysfunctions, including procedures to treat urinary incontinence, and correcting various prolapse conditions such as uterine prolapse, cystoceles, rectoceles, and vaginal vault prolapse.
Women often experience vaginal prolapses due to age or other factors. For example, women may experience a cystocele, a rectocele and/or a hysterocele. A cystocele occurs when the bladder bulges into the vagina, and a rectocele occurs when the rectum bulges into the vagina. A hysterocele occurs when the uterus descends into the vagina. An enterocele (small bowel prolapse) can also occur, when the small bowel pushes through the upper wall of the vagina.
Treatments of such dysfunctions have included suturing procedures or the use of implants for support or suspension. A hysterocele is often treated with a hysterectomy followed by a vaginal vault suspension. Various devices and procedures are used to deliver and secure pelvic implants within a variety of different anatomical structures within a pelvic region. Implants can be delivered to a pelvic region through one or more vaginal incisions, and/or through exterior incisions in the patient.
Existing implants differ in many ways. For example, some implants are formed of a biologic material while others are formed or synthetic materials. Some biologic implants are known to breakdown within the body of the patient over time. Accordingly, in some cases, the patient can experience a recurrence of the dysfunction or prolapse condition. Some implants formed with synthetic materials may be more stable within the body of the patient, but may cause erosion of bodily tissue near the incision (for example, near the vaginal incision created to place the implant).
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an implant that mimics the properties of the native tissue.